Unitary basket strainer and stopper



April 8, 1958 K. P. WOOD 2,829,380

I UNITARY BASKET STRAINER AND STOPPER Filed Jan. 15, 1957 HVVENTUR.

United States PatentjO UNITARY BASKET STRAINER AND STOPPER Kermit P. Wood, Los Angeles, Calif. Application January 15, 1957, Serial No. 634,215

3 Claims. c1. 4-2s1 This invention relates to combination basket strainers of the type which incorporate a stopper device and find principal use in kitchen sinks.

Familiar examples utilize aperforated upper cup member as the strainer which rests on suitable projections in an annular lower member in spaced relation and thereby permits drainage through the latter. Stopper action is obtained by partial rotation of the strainer enabling it to drop, to a lower position in which the projections are in'eifective. Annular seating surfaces on the strainer and the lower member provide the stopper action.

In my prior Patentg2,643,3 94 granted June 30, 1953 is disclosed a unitary basket strainer and stopper of flexible material such as rubber and which may be made in a single moulding operation resulting in a one piece device characterized by simplicity, positive operation and low cost. The present invention is an improvement over the moulded, unitary device of this patent.

In the latter I provided a cup-like-body adapted to fit down into a sink drain and having a lower flexible invertible body portion with strainer holes therein. Moulded integral with this body portion was a valve positioned below the latter and spaced from the strainer holes to enable drainage to take place. In order that the valve could function as a stopper when desired, operating means was provided to invert the lower body portion to engage the valve means therewith to close said strainer holes and thus stop the flow through said holes.

In use in the ordinary kitchen sink the device of my prior patent has been quite satisfactory. In experiments with receptacles of considerably greater depth than the usual kitchen sink such as home laundry tubs and service tubs such as are customarily provided for the use of maintenance personnel in olfice buildings, it was found that when the receptacle was full of water there was not an absolutely tight seal so that some Water would pass through the holes of the strainer and get by the valve. Apparently the inherent resilience of the thin-walled sections of the invertible body portion enabling the latter to snap to its upper closed position or to its lower open position as desired, made it also susceptible to slight deformation under the excessive water pressure head resulting in the seepage mentioned.

Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved unitary basket strainer and stopper of moulded flexible material and equally satisfactory in maintaining a tight seal in deep laundry tubs as well as in usual kitchen sinks.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described which has strainer openings of much greater cross sectional area and hence permits more rapid drainage.

A further object of the invention is to provide a unitary strainer and stopper in which the strainer portion has great resistance to the inventing force of the liquid pressure head to which it is subjected.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a unitary strainer and stopper which not only resists col- 2,829,380 Patented Apr. 8, 1958 lapse when it is opened to drain position beneath a substantial liquid pressure head as occurs in a laundry tub but also utilizes the pressure head when in closed position to seal more tightly.

Another object of the invention is to provide a unitary strainer and stopper providing a positive seal in addition tothe sealing action derived from the aforemen-' tioned pressure head.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a unitary strainer and stopper of the type described and wherein the stopper is locked in its closed position thereby providing a seal that is diflicult to inadvertently dislodge as by articles moved about within the sink or laundry tray.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described which is easily and cheaply manufactured and having a greater field of use than my prior device, may be more economically and hence widely-inventoried by consumer outlets.

The present application is a continuation-in-part of my co-pending application Serial No. 409,803 filed February 12,1954 and since abandoned.

Referring now .to the drawing wherein Figure l is a vertical cross section taken through a diameter of one form of the invention showing the position of the elements when the unit is open for drain- Figure 2 is a similar view of a modified form of the invention incorporating means for locking the elements in closed position;

Figure 3 is a similar view of the form of the invention shown in Fig. 2 but showing the strainer portion inverted to its closed position with the locking means in efiective position;

Figure 4 is a view of a further modified form of the invention taken as in Fig. 1 and showing a slightly different form of locking means.

As shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing, this device comprises a cup-like body 1 having a slightly enlarged annular portion 2 extending outwardly from the upper periphery of the body and blending into -a thin sealing flange 3. Midway between the top and bottom of body 1 and preferably slightly below a midway plane normal to the vertical axis of the body, a frusto-conical strainer 4 having circumferentially spaced slots 5 is joined to the inner wall 6 of the body 1 by a thin, flexible ring 7 to permit inversion of the strainer into a downward position lying fiat against the inwardly and downwardly inclined inner body wall 8 below said ring. It will be seen that in the open position of Fig. 1 the strainer supported on its larger diameter tapers inwardly and upwardly to a smaller diameter which is capped by an integral operating pin 9 having a base 10 corresponding to said smaller diameter. The juncture of the strainer 4 and base It is in a thin, flexible ring to allow ready inversion to either the open or the closed position and to achieve the maximum stability in the selected position. Being unitarily moulded of rubber-like material, the form of the invention shown in Fig. 1 is eflicient and inexpensive.

Where there is risk that pin 9 may he accidentally dislodged from its completely sealing lower position as in particular dish washing operations in a kitchen sink, for example, base 10 may be extended downwardly to form a tapered plug 10;: as shown in the form of the invention shown in Figs. 2 and 3. Plug 10 being of slightly greater diameter than the lower circular opening formed by the inner wall 8 grips the latter in sealing relation when it is pushed downwardly into the position of Fig. 3 and yet may be readily moved upwardly into the open po- 3 clined wall 8 resnltifig in somewhat easiefihvftiiigsi nce the attraction between walls 4 and 8 (Fig. .1) is not.present due to the spacing of walls 4a and 8a (Fig. 3). With sealing action resting now chiefly. on plug 10a, wall 44 can berha'de tapered insection and he'ncefinorfelfleiible for easier inverting. The base of strainer- 421' eiiig' thic'kened*(Fig. 2) adds stifin'ess against colla'p Fin mappe position while the thin upper section facilitates plug-insertion into closed position. a r

In Fig; 4 of the drawing, Ijhave sho'wn' 'a strainerstoppersimilar to that of Figs.-2-3 butha'vi-ng a doubletapered plug instead of a single-tapered plug thereby to provide a more positivelockin'g action. Instead, therefore, of having a plug of enlarged, cylindrical section where it passes through the lower drain opening, the

1-2 at its periphery and slopes upwardly and downwardly; respectively, toward the plug axis. Whenedge 12 is pushed below the edge 13 of ine-lower'opeain 'ef wall 85, itwill snap into locking positio'r'tas will be readily understood Also, I'have shown amypertien 1b the outersidewall of which merges with sealin'g flange 3b in a smooth curve, makingitherebya vacuiiin type seal in particular types of installations.

Having thus described my invention, whaorclaim is: 1. An integrally-moulded, ene-pieee strainer-stopper for use in a sink or laundry tub comprising a generally cylindrical body member havinga continuous inner wall structure including a cylindrical wall defining an upper; open end of said member and a frusto-conic'al wall extending inwardly and downwardly from said cylindrical tending inwardly and downwardly from said cylindrical.

wall to dfifiea lower, open 'end of said member 'of less diameter than said upper opening, a flexible, frusto-conical strainer having its end of maximum diameter flexibly united to said structure along a thin-walled circumference above said frusto-conical wall and an operating pin flexibly united along a thin-walled circumference to the minimum diameter end of said strainer whereby the latter may be inverted to a lower position insealing engagement with said frusto-conical wall.

2. The combination of elements of claim land wherein said one-piece strainer-stopper is made of flexible rubher.

3; An -i'ritegr ally-molded, one pi'ece strainer-stopper for use in a sink or laundry tub comprising a generally cylindrical body member "having a continuous, inner wall structure including a cylindrical walldefining an upper, open end of said member and a frusto-conical wallexwants dfine 'a lower-open end of said member of less diameter thansaidup'per opeiiiiig; 'a fleirible, frusto conical strainer having its endof maximum diameter flexibly united to said "structure along a "thin-walled circumference above saidfr'usti-coriic'al wall and an operating pinflexibly iinited along a thin-walled ircumrere nce to the rniiii murn diameter end of said strainer, said operatingpin beingbf slightly greater diameter thansaid lower, open endan'd serving to close and seal the same upon inversion of said strainer.

No references cited. 

